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2026-07-21 16:31:05The air outside the pub felt cooler than either of them expected. Amelia paused on the pavement, drawing in a slow breath.
"I think I needed that."
"The drink?"
"The company."
Jake smiled.
"I was hoping you'd say that."
She slipped her hands into the pockets of her coat and looked up at the evening sky. The last of the daylight had disappeared, leaving the city washed
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The Things I Can't Do To You 32
The late afternoon sun poured through Amelia's living room window, bathing everything in warm amber light. Amelia had been listening to Jake's heartbeat where her head rested against his shoulder. It was steady now, nothing like the frantic rhythm she'd felt after he'd pulled her away from the electric car.She wondered if he knew how reassuring it was. Jake shifted slightly."You've gone quiet.""I was thinking.""I should be worried."She smiled against his shoulder."You've started saying that every time I think.""Experience has taught me it's safest."She laughed softly."I'm not plotting anything.""Good.""I am wondering how many questions we've asked."Jake frowned thoughtfully."I've completely lost track.""I think we're somewhere around eleven.""So we're only halfway through.""The rules are the rules."He sighed dramatically."I should have negotiated before agreeing.""You absolutely should have."She reached for another strawberry from the plate balanced on the coffee t
The Things I Can't Do To You 31
Jake stood at the entrance to the strawberry field, basket in one hand, watching Amelia take in the endless rows of bright red fruit stretching across the gentle hillside. The near miss in the village still lingered at the edges of his thoughts but she smiled as though nothing had happened.He smiled because she could."You're staring.""I am.""Should I be worried?""No.""You've got your thoughtful face on.""I have different faces?""You definitely do.""And this one means?""You're thinking about something you don't want to tell me."He huffed a quiet laugh."You're getting good at reading me.""I've had an excellent teacher."She reached for an empty basket and held it up triumphantly."So.""So?""What's the strategy?""For strawberries?""Obviously."Jake looked towards the rows."We walk slowly.""Mm-hmm.""We only pick the ripe ones.""Very sensible.""And we definitely don't eat more than we collect.""That sounds suspiciously aimed at Noah.""It absolutely is."She laughed.
The Things I Can't Do To You 30
Jake arrived a few minutes early. He always did.It wasn't because he expected Amelia to mind if he were late. She had already shown him she was endlessly patient. He simply preferred arriving with enough time to settle himself. The picnic blanket was folded in the boot beside a cool bag containing sandwiches, coffee, bottles of water and a small box of chocolate-covered strawberries he'd quietly bought earlier in the week.You labelled the containers."They're organised."They're labelled.Jake smiled despite himself.The entrance door to Amelia's apartment opened and she stepped into the afternoon sunshine wearing a pale blue summer dress with white trainers and a cream cardigan draped over one arm. Her honey-blonde hair rested in loose waves around her shoulders, and the smile she gave him as soon as she spotted his car made every careful plan for the day worthwhile.Mate."I know."She climbed into the passenger seat."Morning.""Morning.""You were early.""I was.""I knew you wo
The Things I Can't Do To You 29
Amelia had barely managed to kick off her shoes before her phone started ringing. She smiled as Lucy's name lit up the screen."You're unbelievable," Amelia said, answering as she nudged her front door closed with her foot."I know.""You've been waiting.""I've been timing you since you messaged to say he's met you after work."Amelia laughed, dropping her handbag onto the kitchen counter."That's not even slightly normal.""I estimated how long it'd take you to get home, spend five awkward minutes smiling at your front door and then realise you hadn't told me everything.""I did not smile at my front door.""You absolutely did.""I smiled at the lift.""See? Progress."Amelia shook her head, still laughing as she wandered into the kitchen and filled the kettle."You're ridiculous.""And yet, here you are answering my call.""I knew you wouldn't leave me alone.""Correct. Right, tell me everything.""We went for a drink.""I know that bit.""He surprised me outside work.""Aww.""It
The Things I Can't Do To You 28
The air outside the pub felt cooler than either of them expected. Amelia paused on the pavement, drawing in a slow breath."I think I needed that.""The drink?""The company."Jake smiled."I was hoping you'd say that."She slipped her hands into the pockets of her coat and looked up at the evening sky. The last of the daylight had disappeared, leaving the city washed in amber streetlights and the glow of shop windows."So," she said. "Am I walking you home or are you walking me home?""I was planning on walking you.""I thought you might.""You don't mind?"She looked at him as though the answer should have been obvious."I'd like that."They set off at an unhurried pace, neither of them in any rush for the evenin
The Things I Can't Do To You 27
By the time their second drinks arrived, the pub had filled with the familiar rhythm of a Thursday evening. Conversation drifted between the old wooden beams, glasses clinked together behind the bar and someone near the fireplace was attempting to explain the rules of darts to a friend with very little success.Jake barely noticed any of it. His attention kept returning to Amelia. She had a habit of talking with her hands when she became animated, punctuating every story with tiny gestures that somehow made ordinary events sound far funnier than they had any right to be."...and then," she said, laughing at the memory, "he replied to his own email."Jake frowned."How do you reply to your own email?""I genuinely don't know.""And nobody stopped him?""We tried.""And?""He thanked us for our feed
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